1871 announced today that Mesirow Financial will join the community as a corporate partner alongside over 100 other companies, institutions, and centers of higher education.

 1871 announced today that The Hatchery will join 1871 as a partner in scaling ChiBuys, an 1871 program which aims to direct catering expenditures towards diverse and woman-owned food vendors throughout the city. 

1871 announced today a new partnership with the Chicago chapter of the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO), which will include an exchange of resources and event opportunities in order to better serve women entrepreneurs from both communities. NAWBO represents the collective voice of over 10.1 million women-owned businesses in the U.S. and seeks to advance the interests of all women entrepreneurs across all industries.

1871 announced today its participation in Everyone Can Code (ECC), a coding education initiative that brings together Chicago Public Schools, City Colleges of Chicago, One Summer Chicago, the Mayor’s Office, and a number of Chicagoland businesses and nonprofits. The initiative aims to make coding and technology careers more accessible to students from all backgrounds.

1871 joined Transamerica Retirement Solutions and Mesirow Financial to announce a new retirement plan benefit that will soon be available to all 1871 companies and alumni members. The new offering will allow smaller teams and startup companies access to retirement benefits, which is powered by Pinnacle Financial Services, Inc. 

1871 announced today that Trinity Christian College will kick off an associate membership at 1871, which includes access to shared co-working space, conference rooms, and certain events, as well as the opportunity for students to participate in Campus 1871, a weekend-long event that brings together approximately 300 students from 1871’s university partners.

Today we kick off the sixth cohort of WiSTEM, the 1871 accelerator program that has graduated five cohorts, supported 64 companies and 72 individual women, and raised more than $10 million in capital collectively since the program’s inception in Fall of 2015. 

Today marks the official launch of 1871.Live, a new streaming platform that will bring more than 17,000 hours of entrepreneurial and business-focused educational programming to multiple community center partners across the city. 1871 is one of eight community organizations awarded a grant by ChicagoNEXT and the Blackstone Charitable Foundation for the 2017 Blackstone Inclusive Entrepreneurial Challenge.

This month, 1871 launched a three-month partnership with UNIQLO, a popular global fashion retailer located on Michigan Avenue in downtown Chicago, featuring in-store displays by five incredible 1871 member companies. We visited the store this week with a few of our participating entrepreneurs to get the scoop.

Today, 1871  launches the 1871 Advanced Member Program (AMP), a program geared toward later-stage companies which are scaling and have reached specific industry benchmarks determined by 1871. This is 1871’s latest offering to ensure the best and brightest companies are supported with resources relevant to their stage of growth.